


Walk a mile in his shoes

by lasersheith



Category: RWBY
Genre: Gen, Humor, Jaune amplifying Qrow's semblance, Post Season 6, Qrow's semblance is so unfortunate and hilarious, and Salem catches up to them, cracked played straight, they just made it to Atlas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-02
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-10-20 20:33:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17629199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lasersheith/pseuds/lasersheith
Summary: Salem's forces have them surrounded and their options are running thin. Jaune has an idea that's just unfortunate enough to work.“It's working!” Nora bellowed, laughing almost hysterically.Qrow laughed too, surprising the team. “This is kinda funny when it's not happening to me,” he slurred, smirking over at Jaune.





	Walk a mile in his shoes

Even with the entire formidable might of the Atlas Airfleet under General Ironwood's command, Salem's forces overtook the city in a matter of hours. Her beasts were relentless, tearing through ships and flesh alike. The call of the Relic of Knowledge fueled them even more than their fear and devotion of their Mistress. 

Everyone was bone tired, worn to the core and fighting with the last reserves of strength they had. They were surrounded, outnumbered, outgunned, and swiftly running out of options. 

Jaune swore under his breath, desperately searching the battlefield around them for anything that could give them even the slightest advantage. All at once an idea struck him, along with the handle of Qrow's scythe. Qrow shot him an apologetic grimace and turned back to the fight. 

“Guys I have a plan!” Jaune shouted over the cacophony of noise around them. “But I don't think anybody is gonna like it.” 

Ruby risked a glance over at him, nodding tersely as she shot down another Grimm flying towards their circle. “Alright! Let's hear it then!” Ruby cried, her silver eyes flashing a brilliant white, banishing a few waves of the seemingly endless Grimm that tore at them. 

It amazed Jaune how she still managed to sound so cheerful even in the midst of a battle they were losing so badly. 

He heard a muttered curse to his other side and saw Qrow ripping his scythe out of a wedge in the ground where it had become stuck. The man was so weary from the hours of fighting that he was losing control over his semblance, just like they all were. For most of them, it meant that they couldn't call upon their power as easily, if at all; for Qrow it meant not having the strength to keep his cursed luck at bay. 

“I'll find a corner to hide in so I don't ruin it,” he grumbled bitterly, taking the brief lull in the fighting as a chance for a deep swig of his flask. 

Jaune chuckled. “Actually, uh,” he rubbed the back of his neck and smiled uncomfortably. “You're kind of key to my plan.” 

Qrow paled and everyone lowered themselves from their fighting stances to look at Jaune skeptically. 

“On my signal, everyone is going to put down their weapons and I'm gonna amplify Qrow's semblance.” He tried to sound decisive as he spoke, though he wasn't sure if the plan would work. “Maybe, maybe the Grimm will be affected by it and won’t be able to attack us as easily.” 

Qrow muttered something unintelligible under his breath and drained the flask. “Ah hell, might as well give it shot.” He tucked the empty bottle back into his pocket. 

Weiss's brows furrowed and she looked like she was going to raise an objection, but the Grimm were moving in again, no longer stunned or scared back from Ruby's eyes. “Well get on with it then!” She cried, the mechanical click of her sword sending a fireball at a beast that drew too close for her comfort. 

Jaune nodded, putting his hand on Qrow's shoulder. “Alright, weapons down!” He shouted, closing his eyes to focus. 

The team followed his order, their weapons clattering to the ground at their feet. Blake pulled at Yang's prosthetic, dropping it down as well, just to be safe. 

At first, nothing happened as Jaune began to glow and Qrow stood unsteadily at his side, swaying a little in his half-drunken daze. Weiss groaned, kneeling to grab her sword but stopped fast as monsters began tripping over themselves, accidentally knocking out comrades as they unexpectedly lost their footing or their wings were caught in unusual gusts of wind. Several fire hydrants hissed in rapid succession, straining bolts and dry rotted o-rings suddenly giving way and spraying water in all directions. A cart in the street, well out of any errant spray, caught fire of its own accord. 

“It's working!” Nora bellowed, laughing almost hysterically. 

Qrow laughed too, surprising the team. “This is kinda funny when it's not happening to me,” he slurred, smirking over at Jaune. 

“Ok, step two,” Jaune said calmly, even though his heart was thudding in his chest. It was hard to concentrate for so long and his hand kept trying to slip off of Qrow's shoulder. “Everyone  _ very carefully _ grab your weapons and we'll make our way back to the base. We can regroup with the rest of the military there and maybe have a little while to rest. But  _ be careful,”  _ he finished emphatically. It would be a miracle if none of them were killed on the short walk. 

Everyone did as instructed, keeping the business ends of their weapons pointed out at the Grimm and careful not to swing them near each other. Not that the Grimm needed any help dispatching themselves; they flew into brick buildings, clipped their wings on street signs, tripped directly into the many small fires or harsh jets of water popping up along the streets. 

Inch by careful inch, the team made their way to General Ironwood's stronghold. Ren had tripped twice, the second time falling into Nora, whose hammer went off and sent her cascading across a walkway and through a metal door. She'd shrugged off the blow with only a few minor scrapes, thankfully. Shortly thereafter, the long rope at the edge of Blake's sword had gotten tangled in Yang's hair and it took a blast of Ren's semblance to calm the blaze of rage that had started attracting even more creatures towards their slow shuffle. 

Qrow was laughing the entire walk. His shaking shoulder was hard to hold onto when combined with his already unusual, slumping gait. Jaune had slipped once and the effect had been immediate and devastating. Creatures swarmed them, no longer affected by the rampant misfortune, until another blast from Ruby's eyes just barely saved them in time. Weiss had to sling one of Ruby's arms over her shoulders and half carry her, the attack sapping nearly the very last of her energy. 

The gargantuan gate was finally visible in front of them and their relief was palpable in the air. They approached at a jog, into a throng of soldiers whose guns all jammed nearly in unison. Qrow shrugged his shoulder out of Jaune's grip and the rapid firing resumed again in seconds. He was still laughing. 

“I can't believe we really made it,” Blake murmured, staring up at the base in awe.

Oscar nodded. “I thought we were gonna die for sure.” Everyone else stood in silence, waiting for the soldiers to open the gate for them. 

Only Qrow was smiling, all of the students far too exhausted from the harrowing trek across the monster-covered city. “This gives me a lot of ideas for April Fool's day,” he said with a smirk, gesturing for everyone to go along in front of him. 

No one could really tell if he was joking or not, but they all hoped he was.


End file.
